


After the Storm

by JessKo



Category: Star Wars: Thrawn Series - Timothy Zahn (2017)
Genre: Bruises, Fluff, M/M, Post Academy Attack Care, Road Rash/Scrapes and Cuts, Thrawn and Eli both have some Boo Boos that need attention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-31
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-19 16:09:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15513537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JessKo/pseuds/JessKo
Summary: At the Royal Imperial Academy, it has been anything but smooth sailing for Cadets Thrawn and Eli Vanto. One particularly eventful night leads to a botched attempt by other cadets to get both into deep trouble, and end with an all out brawl! Thrawn demonstrates his strategic genius in his solution to the aftermath, but both Thrawn and Cadet Vanto have gained some injuries that will require attention.Just some care fluff in which balms are applied and feelings realized.





	After the Storm

“Yes,” Thrawn said. “Perhaps.”

Eli Vanto unlocked the door to their flat in the barracks. Tonight, his fears had been realized. Thrawn had been lured into a trap, and an obvious one at that, by two other Cadets at the academy. With his Lieutenant’s plaque, Thrawn was able to save that situation, but on the walk back, an attack had been launched. A physical attack.  

Thrawn had pushed Eli out of harm's way, but Eli did not know if that was for better or worse seeing the Chiss’ current state. His lower lip was split, and a purple bruise was visible just below his sharp jawline. Eli could only imagine what was blooming under the academy uniform.

His thoughts were so deep that Eli hardly realized the Chiss was staring right back at him from across their small home. “Your fingers are hurt.” Thrawn said simply, stepping up next to Eli and nonchalantly picking up one of his hands, “Injuring yourself for my benefit was not necessary, Cadet Vanto.”  
Feeling heat rise to his face, Eli looked down to see his smaller, tan hand cradled in Thrawn’s own azure digits, and being turned over softly. In the pads of his fingers, there were some minor scrapes and cuts. Nothing serious, but some gravel was also lodged in some of these cuts.

“Oh, I didn’t realize I, uh,” Eli mumbled, “Just… I couldn't sit back and watch those guys try and, you know…” He was still quite shaken despite the fact it had been a solid hour since the altercation, adrenaline still hammering in his ears. The walk back to the barracks from Commandant Deenlark’s office had been anything but calming for him, and this new gesture was only adding to Eli’s anxiety.

“Hurt me?” Thrawn offered, subtly showing curiosity. Eli drew in a sharp breath.

“Uh, yeah. Hurt you.” the other man said, nodding once, attention drawn again to his hand as Thrawn gave it a gentle pull. 

“It is not wise to let the sediment reside in your hand.” Thrawn commented, leading the way to the refresher. Again, Eli nodded, flabbergasted at this sudden sign of care from the seemingly unfeeling Chiss. “Especially on your supply track, you will need to be able to take notes, write figures…”

Snapped back to reality, Eli followed Thrawn into the small refresher. The room was obviously made with only a single user in mind he thought to himself as he stood next to Thrawn, arms brushing against each other as his hand was held under the faucet, warm water trickling out. Thrawn motioned for Eli to place his other hand under the stream and he did just that.

Supply career track, the reason Eli Vanto had applied to the Imperial Myomar Academy in the first place. To serve the Empire and reach much higher aspirations than were available back home on Lysatra. Here at the Royal Academy, Eli thought, he could reach even further heights after graduating from the most prestigious of the Imperial Schools. His mind continued to wander, wondering if life on a Star Destroyer as lead supply officer of a whole fleet, a role now possibly accessible to him, could really be a dream come true. Suddenly, there was a sharp pinch of pain. Eli winced, “Ow!” and snapped his eyes back to the wash basin before him.

“Apologies, I will work to finish this part quickly.” Thrawn said flatly. His deft fingers were quickly pulling bits of gravel from Eli’s skin after massaging away the dried blood, reopening the wounds and causing pain.

Eli bit back another wince, muttering, “Thanks.”  What was he thinking? Tonights incident may not go on his official record, but he was sure word would spread, especially with Thrawn and himself arriving to their next classes battered and bruised. This would only things worse for someone like him, a wild space yokel. Eli thought at this point he would be lucky assigned as an aide to a Lieutenant. Another sharp pinch and again Eli was at attention to the situation in the wash basin, actively pulling his hand away, but a pressure on his thumb prevented this. Thrawn was applying pressure to the wound, to slow the bleeding. Smart. “Sorry…” he muttered, but Thrawn seemed to pay the gesture, and the remark, no mind, continuing the process after a few more seconds of pressure.  
Finally, after another minute or so, Thrawn calmly uttered, “Finished. Are you hurt anywhere else?”

Eli flexed his newly freed fingers, then patted them dry on a hanging towel nearby, “Not that I know of… What about you?” He asked, realising his injuries were truly nothing compared with what Thrawn was carrying, and that was only what was visible. Eli remembered the blow to his torso, his forearm attack. Despite all of this, Thrawn’s main priority had been Eli’s wellbeing, and his personal wishes for the future. Eli felt incredibly guilty now. How could he fantasize about all this as Thrawn was busy caring for his own hands!

Thrawn turned to Eli, as best he could in the cramped space, and Eli noticed again that hint of curiosity in his face. He remembered the Chiss’ advanced vision, thinking he probably looked as hot as the surface of Tatooine by now. “My injuries are minor, and will heal. I have endured worse.”

“You said that already.” Eli replied back quickly, a frown now painting his face, “And so are mine, but you insisted on making a fuss, so for once maybe let someone else fuss over you?”  
Even Eli surprised himself as he said this, but it felt right, and he straightened his posture, mustering up as much assertiveness as he could. Thrawn sized Eli up, the curious expression somehow remaining as he looked the man before him up and down.

“Very well. But quickly. You require rest.”

“We do. We require rest.” Eli retorted, anxiety melting away to confidence. Was that the hint of a smile on the Chiss’ lips, or a trick of the lighting? He did not dwell here and awkwardly began to shuffle around Thrawn to access their small medicine cabinet in search of an appropriate balm or ointment.

Thrawn shifted, leaning over the wash basin, so that Eli could pass, giving a small wince at having his weight placed on his abdomen in the action.

Eli noticed the sound, but also how strongly it was attempted to be muffled, so he did not comment. Thrawn was a proud being, and Eli knew he was hurting plenty. There was no need for another low blow. He did mentally note this location to be sure to apply a medicine there.

After pawing in the small cabinet, Eli found what he wanted and turned back around to face Thrawn, “Maybe we should do this outside of the refresher?”  
Wordlessly, Thrawn agreed, exiting out to the main living space, standing next to their bunks. Approaching the Chiss, Eli set one balm down on the desk and opened another small container which contained a medicine for bruising. “This will reduce the swelling and make the area less sensitive,” He announced in a slow voice while reading the back of the container for application instructions, “Says to just rub it in.”

He looked up at Thrawn, still standing across the room, who looked back down at him with a blank expression. Without being asked, Thrawn’s hand went to the collar of the Academy uniform and unhooked the fasteners, quickly pulling it down to his waist and tying the sleeves off at the beltline. Eli felt as if the wind were knocked out of him and just stared for a moment, and his eyes migrated, taking in the handsome sight before him.

Well built was an understatement for describing Thrawn. Eli could only compare him to the finely chiseled stone statues he had seen in the temples back on Lysatra. That is until he got to the bright purple welts adorning his arms and abdomen. Eli also noticed the lack of bruising on Thrawn’s hands. The Chiss had not even thrown a punch against his assailants… 

Shaking the thoughts from his mind, Eli put a generous amount of the white cream on his hand before beginning with Thrawn’s arm, which was held out before him. His skin was remarkably soft, and underneath the smooth muscle was loosely flexed from the effort of holding it out at nearly a right angle. Thoughts of the other, darker, bruises did not allow Eli to linger, and also blocked out what could have been an incredibly awkward silence, the only sound in the room the men’s soft breaths. 

Having finished covering any dark marks on Thrawn's arms with the cream, Eli took a deeper breath, “Next I guess I ought to-” 

Thrawn cut the human off, and placed his arms back down at his sides, “Please.” 

“Yes, right away.” Eli moved on, a bit flustered now, to Thrawn’s abdomen. The bruise was more compact than those on his arms, but was the deepest color of them all, and he knew it was causing the Chiss much pain. Working quickly, a thick layer of the cream was applied to the warm, slightly swollen flesh. Finally there was the bruise on Thrawn’s jaw. It interrupted the smooth curvature of the Chiss’ facial structure, the singular blemish on an otherwise perfect feature. Eli felt what he could only describe as a pang of sadness that such a beautiful architecture had been disrupted, and the fire of anger threatened to burn to the surface.

Eli huffed, only to find himself calmed by a soft weight at his shoulder. Thawn’s hand. His eyes flicked up to gaze into crimson orbs. The normally threatening Chiss eyes, glowing red and blazing true, was a comfort. Something steady. Something that no action could quell. Eli’s lips formed a soft smile, a wordless understanding met. Thrawn lowered himself onto the bottom bunk, sitting so that Eli would not have to reach up for the final bruise.

Eli took the last of the salve onto his thumb and gently traced the line of bruising, willing himself to not focus on the intimacy of the gesture. He was administering a cream, not…

Finished with the task, his eyes flicked to the split lip before him. “I have something for this too,” Eli’s voice cracked as he broke the silence. Thrawn did not react to this, and Eli turned to swap one container for the next, a much smaller one, reading the instructions on the walk back over. “This one is a bit different, says I ought to apply a thin layer and let it dry. Will lock in moisture and-”

Eli nearly tripped on top of Thrawn, catching himself on the top bunk. In his reading, he had not paid much attention to where he was walking. This time, Eli was positive he spotted the whisper of a smile on those thin blue lips. And now it was time for them to receive their attention. Eli did not give him time to reconsider, flipping open the small container and taking a small amount of the balm on his finger. He liberally applied it to the bottom lip, “Hold them apart for a minute,” he asked of Thrawn’s lips, and the Chiss complied, separating them minisculely.

The longest minute passed, and then the deed was done. Eli realized he did not need to watch the entire time, but he simply could not peel his eyes away. “It should be dry now,” he said softly, touching his own bottom lip as a gesture for Thrawn to test it himself.

The Chiss did just that, trailing his index finger along his bottom lip before closing them a moment. “Thank you Cadet Vanto.” This was not only music to Eli’s ears, but his eyes as well, seeing Thrawn’s lips form his name.

Eli let out a soft sigh, “Thank you as well.” He found himself unable to speak such formality as a rank, and just left it there. Such magic these moments had was fleeting, Eli could feel. “So, next is resting?” 

Thrawn nodded, and Eli turned his back to place the container back on the desk. By the time he turned back around, Thrawn was under the covers of his bed, eyes closed.  Fleeting indeed. Eli felt awake as ever, but for Thrawn would try and get some of this rest, climbing into his top bunk. His heart fluttered and mind raced…

With each passing moment, such fortune as Aide to a Lieutenant seemed more like the real dream, and stranded as Supply Officer the nightmare. That is, if he were to serve as the right hand of Lieutenant Thrawn.  

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this was enjoyable for all, and that I did out favorite Cadets justice!
> 
> Kudos and comments always loved~
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr at [ysalamiri-queen](http://ysalamiri-queen.tumblr.com)


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